Furnished apartments and studios: 13th Arrondissement

The Gobelins neighbourhood in the west of the arrondissement retains a medieval feel and just south of the Place d’Italie is the village-like Butte-aux-Cailles, with cobbled streets, pretty squares and plenty of traditional bistros. Beyond that is Paris’s large Chinatown, full of bustling shops and Asian restaurants. Back toward the river is the vast Bibliothèque Nationale de France. The library has now been joined by the newly-built Paris Rive Gauche business district, a new university, cafes, shops, a movie complex, housing, schools and a popular floating swimming pool moored on the Seine. Accommodation-wise, the area beside the river offers the possibility of modern, well-priced condo-style apartments with parking and, for a quick way into the centre of the city, access to the limited-stop number 14 Métro line.